NEW DELHI: The secret of Mumbai’s phenomenal success in
Ranji Trophy over the years has been their ability to evolve as a team — with or without their stars. And as the 41-time champions stare at a new season — which commences against Railways at the Karnail Singh Stadium today — the situation will not be unfamiliar for the domestic power house with a new coach and a new captain at helm to steer the ship.
Vinayak Samant — a
domestic cricket
journeyman, who added street smartness to his deft glove-work behind the stumps for Mumbai and other teams — has been chosen to coach a side that hasn’t laid its hands on the trophy since 2015-2016.
With countless
cricket
pundits waiting for a single slip up to bring the knives out, Samant is well aware of the consequences.
“Anyone who is associated with Mumbai cricket knows how demanding and how competitive it is. So I know what I am in for. But as a coach my first priority is to plan things in such a manner that the team qualifies for the knockouts. I know expectations are very high. But now that I have taken the plunge, I am keen to prove myself,” says Samant.
Last season, Mumbai were thumped by Karnataka in the quarterfinals of the Ranji Trophy. In the tournaments that followed, Mumbai faltered and subsequently coach Sameer Dighe stepped down.
Samant, though, believes success is achieved by executing things perfectly on the playing field. “I am not here to teach technique to the boys. Or even tell them what’s good or bad for them. My job is to identify the qualities and their shortcomings. That’s precisely what I am going to do,” he said.
Citing the example of the Karnail Singh wicket, Samant explained: “The wicket here plays a bit low. So playing horizontal bat strokes such as the cut and pull would be a bad idea. The batsmen need to play in the ‘V’. So I am working with the boys on how to play the low-bouncing delivery.”
While Samant seemed upbeat about the future, he was a bit concerned that the squad did not get sufficient time to train together. Most of Mumbai’s players were busy with the recently-concluded Deodhar and Vijay Hazare Trophy matches.
“Our first training session as a unit was in Delhi after we arrived here. There was just no time to train together,” he said.
Asked if it was a relief for Mumbai that they are facing Railways up front instead of some fancied rival in the wake of such a short training stint, Samant said: “Not at all. The Railway squad has not changed much for the last five-six years. So they know each other’s game very, very well.
“Most importantly, there is no weak or strong opposition as far as I am concerned. My aim is to ensure that my team executes plans to the best of their ability. It doesn’t matter who the opposition is. For me it doesn’t matter if the team is playing the first league match or a semifinal or the final. We have a game plan and that has to be executed,” Samant insisted.
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